Don't you dare forget the Sunshine Child
by hidekanede
Summary: AU in which Hide's a guardian – as in someone who died saving another person – and is thereby gifted with teleportation. Kaneki's a haemokineter – someone who uses blood to fight – as they stumble through their new school, a school of magic,murder and mystery! Ratings change. [Hide x Kaneki] main- and [Touka x Yoriko], [Yomo x Uta] and [Tsukiyama x Banjo] sidepairs. Triggerwarning.


Summary: AU in which Hide's a guardian – as in someone who died saving another person – and is thereby gifted with teleportation. Kaneki's a haemokineter – someone who uses blood to fight – as they stumble through their new school, a school of magic,murder and mystery!

Kaneki-centered.

Pairs: [Hide x Kaneki] as the main- and [Touka x Yoriko] as well as [Yomo x Uta] and [Tsukiyama x Banjou] as side-pairings.

Warnings: [Graphic depictions of violence], [Swear words], [Mature content]

P.S.: The school system used here is the same as in Germany from grades 1-10, which means: One has not "classes" but one fix "class", where one is together with the same people at all times and in every subject. Way more relaxed and easier to write.

Grunting, Kaneki picked himself up from the floor. He dusted his jacket off and stared at the boy who ran into him. Except for them, the street was empty. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" exclaimed said boy and set off to help Kaneki recollect his books, his blonde hair swaying through the hair behind him. "It's okay" the black-haired boy said and picked up his maths book. "I am Hide" the blonde said and reached out an arm as they finished picking up Kaneki's school stuff. "Kaneki" he said, warily noticing Hide didn't mention his full name and taking the hand to lift him off the ground. "So, Kaneki" Hide started yet again as Kaneki stood upright again, "how can I make up for running into you?" Smiling, Hide looked at him. Kaneki simply shook his head. "Ah, it's okay...really." he stated. "How about I treat you to coffee?" asked the blonde in a mocking tone. "Wha-?" startled, Kaneki stumbled a few steps back. "You seem to like books, I know a great bookstore café, right around the corner" Did the guy ever stop smiling, Kaneki asked himself and then found himself nodding at Hide. "Great, then! When are you free?" the blonde asked and closed his eyes in a grin, his arms rested behind his head. "This evening" Kaneki replied and smiled back at the other.

"Now where were you heading, Kaneki?" asked the blonde. "Oh shoot! I'm going to be late for my first day at the new school!" Kaneki shouted out in anguish. "Where is your school?" Hide asked and side-glanced Kaneki. "That's a rather intimate question..." said Kaneki. No way he was going to reveal himself to someone he just met on the street. "Hey, I smell supernatural all over you, calm down" Hide whispered conspiratorially. Kaneki paled and felt his hair starting to lose color. "I'm going to get us to school like a bat out of hell." he picked the boy whose hair was rapidly paling and started running towards the school. If anyone had seen them, they only would have seen a white lighting.

They arrived at school even before the other students and Hide simply ran up the facade of the school building. As they reached the flat roof, he let down the boy whose hair was now half white and half black. Then, after a few seconds, his hair was white except a few strands. "How are we supposed to get into the building now?" were the first words Kaneki directed at the other. "We could teleport back down?" Hide proposed but Kaneki shook his head. "One time is enough, I'm still nauseous..."

Kaneki reached into his pocket and took out a small switch-blade. "Whoa, 'Neki, calm down, no need to..." Hide started but was silenced by a hitch in his voice as Kaneki shook his head and slashed open his own arm without flinching. Hide opened and closed his mouth as Kaneki formed a narrow staircase. The black hair was now fully replaced by white. He smiled at Hide who looked at him mortified. "How can you do that?" Hide asked. "It's what I do..." Kaneki said, his voice now deep and mature. "And that staircase is ... safe?" Hide yelped as white-haired Kaneki grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the staircase. "It is as long as I stay alive and conscious." he replied and dragged Hide downstairs. When they arrived at the bottom, a few students that have also come too early stood, shaking in their boots. Behind them, the staircase dissolved and let behind a giant puddle of blood. Kaneki looked pale as the anemia hit him and he needed to sit down.

"FORTISSIMO, way to make an entrance" they heard a male voice behind them. Hide and Kaneki turned around, seeing a slender and tall man before them. His hair was a dazzling purple. He looked down at the boys and took Kaneki's hand, sniffing it. "Dude, what the hell!" Kaneki snarled and slapped the man. Hide saw the black slowly washing into the white and was glad, "White Kaneki's" persona was a little strange to say the least. In a matter of seconds, the white was completely gone and "Black Kaneki" apologized to the man. "Now, how about we just forget about that and go inside?" the man asked, smiling suspiciously. He walked to the main entrance and pulled out a long and heavy key to open it. Kaneki was quick to remember the shape of the key, just in case he would come too early again and wanted to get in. "So, which class did you land in?" asked Hide and smiled at Kaneki. "Class 3-E" he said. "That is great! Same as me" Hide shouted. Kaneki simply smiled.

Their first subject would be Maths and Kaneki got his stuff ready, sat in the last desk, Hide slipping down next to him. "Why do we need to learn Maths, it's so unnecessary" he lamented before the teacher walked in. She straightened herself, standing behind her desk and eyeing the class. "A lot of new faces" she said, her voice shockingly similar to a dentist's drill. "Please, everyone set up your name tags" she said. Kaneki wrote the kanji of his name, Hide simply wrote hiragana "hi de". Everyone else wrote their names in Roman letters.

"The two boys in the back, PLEASE, write your names in a language, not some weird gibberish!" the high-pitched voice rang through Hide's head as he grabbed his tag, wrote "hide" and set it back up. Kaneki looked at him helplessly, his words full of sorrow. "What is it, Kaneki?" Hide asked, speaking Japanese. "I can't write in romaji, help me!" Kaneki whispered and Hide choked back a laughter, took the other boy's tag and wrote the name. "Stop laughing!" Kaneki said, blushing fiercely.

"Since this is our first lesson, you're pretty much free to do whatever you want, as long as you stay in the room and don't use magic" she said, sitting behind her desk and rocking her chair back, her feet on the table. Kaneki and Hide got up from their chairs and walked to one of the windows, where they sat on the sill. They started talking about their powers, as did everyone else in the room, apparently it was a thing to ask to get to know one another.

"What can you do with your blood, 'Neki?" Hide asked and Kaneki blushed over the use of the nickname. "Well, it's kind of like...I can manipulate it into everything I know how to build..." he said. "So what can you ´build´?" shot Hide another question at him. "Not very much, only the staircase you saw, a katana and a handgun" he said. "Wait, a handgun? A pistol? You learned how to construct a working pistol from your blood?" Hide was amazed. "I need something explosive for the bullets though" Kaneki said quickly. Hide nodded and reached into his pockets. He took out a big firecracker. "Can you use that?" he asked. "Theoretically, but why?" Kaneki asked and anticipated something stupid. "So you can show me!" Kaneki was amazed at how good he knew Hide. Or more like the mask Hide wore, so much could Kaneki tell. "She said ´no powers´, Hide" Kaneki insisted. Hide looked at their teacher who tried to settle a fight between a Trickster and his victim, whose face was black from the smoke bomb the Trickster had used.

"Please" Hide used the doggy-eyes trick that always worked when he needed to get away from trouble and Kaneki sighed. "Just one, okay?" he said and stabbed himself in the hand, the wound letting out a droplet of blood before closing. With shut eyes, Kaneki formed a bullet from the droplet and filled in a bit of the gunpowder in the cracker. Then he let the bullet levitate in the air, sliced his arm and started constructing the gun's parts, there were a lot of parts. He managed to construct them all in twenty seconds, unknowing that everyone in the room had their eyes fixed on him as he moved his hands through the air, like conducting an orchestra. He formed the parts without touching the blood, still moving it. Then – when he had all of them – he started putting them together, like a puzzle. His eyes were still closed. He took the ammo clip out and inserted the single bullet. Only when it clicked back into place he opened his yes again. The locked and loaded gun levitated freely, revolving slowly. He noticed that everyone looked at him with wide eyes, noticed the teacher had left the room.

He looked at Hide who slowly started applauding, the other students joining him. Kaneki sat down, he hated being in the spotlight. "Can I touch it?" asked Hide and Kaneki nodded, sending it right into Hide's hands. Hide looked at it, it felt just like it was made from metal, but it was a vivid red. Hide pointed it at the blackboard where someone had scribbled a target. He shot, no sound leaving the gun as the bullet flew a perfect straight line. "Bull's eye!" Hide celebrated and Kaneki gently let the gun levitate towards the window where he dissolved it. A wave of anemia hit him and he groaned. "Hey, you okay?" Hide asked worryingly. "Yes, it's okay" Kaneki said, his white hair once again being replaced by black in a matter of seconds. "It's just – first the staircase, now the gun...even I sometimes have anemia, y'know?" Kaneki's speech was slurred slightly.

"What did I say about not using magic?" the voice of their teacher was high-pitched as before. "I am sure I said...wait why do I smell blood?" she asked, looking around the room. Her eyes fell on Kaneki. "Are you okay, you look horribly pale!" she said. "I'm fine, just need a few minutes" he said, his voice thin. "Well, the class is dismissed. Next time, we're actually going to learn something!" The students moaned and got out the room. Kaneki and Hide were the last ones to stay put.

"Can you stand?" Hide stretched out his arm. Kaneki gladly took it and got up. "One question, are you able to use your power to levitate yourself?" Hide chatted as they walked towards their next class – Powers training. "Yes, technically, I never thought about it though..." Kaneki smiled at him. "I will try that next!" he said. "I've only seen you use your teleportation, what else can you do?" he asked Hide. "Well, I can shoot back people's attacks at themselves, to an extent. But I'm actually not a fighter, right?" Hide said, "I mostly rely on running away" Hide's smile fell for just a moment and Kaneki was sure that was one of the moments where he saw the real Hide under the bubbly, obnoxious surface.

They sat down in the room, the teacher charging in right after them. He walked up front, his long black hair swaying after him. He jumped on the table and greeted everyone. He was covered in tattoos, even his neck was full and his face was pierced. His hair was shaved off on one side and his eyes had black sclerae and red irides. "I am Uta" he said, "I'll teach you to master your individual powers. That's why this" - he made an arm movement to show he meant the room - "is not a suitable location." The teacher bent his fingers backwards and cracked them. "So we'll be going to the next campus gymnasium. Can anyone teleport?" he asked the class. Hide and a shy girl with brown bob-cut hair raised their hands. Uta pointed out the window to a gymnasium around three miles away, it was only visible because there was nothing in the line of view. "Over there, please" he said and Hide grabbed Kaneki's hand, everyone touching their neighbor, until every student was connected to a teleporter. Uta was last to touch Hide's shoulders. "To infinity and beyond!" someone shouted before the people flickered out the walls. One aspect of teleportation Hide couldn't live without.

When they were in front of the gym, Kaneki glanced at Hide. "Why didn't you tell me you could go through walls before I used almost half my blood?" he asked. "You didn't give me the time to say so...and you said you didn't want to flicker anymore!" Hide exculpated himself. Kaneki sighed and waited for Uta to open the door.

Everyone got into the big gym, seeing targets aligned on a wall and ropes hanging from the ceiling. Spare that, the room was empty. Everyone took a seat on the floor as Uta prompted them to. "You should first try to show me your power, I will then be able to mimic it and help you perfect it." Uta said. "I will help everyone for three minutes, but you should all train the whole time, you know." Before he even finished his sentence, a white-haired boy started shooting red strings at the targets while hanging on another string from the ceiling. The same strings were stitched into him everywhere. "Follow Suzuya's lead, everyone!" Uta sighed and shot a red string himself before going over to the white-haired. Hide and Kaneki went into a corner where Hide started teleporting himself from one corner to another. Kaneki thought of something that he could stand upon to lift himself off the ground. He sliced his arm and let a pen appear, scribbled on the floor and came up with an idea.

He would construct a shield that he could not only use to defend himself with but also to float upon. Therefore, it needed grip for his feet. He came up with a solution as he thought about a pot's handle. He started to form a flat, round disc. Then he thickened the middle of it and bent the edges inward. It was big enough to hide him completely if he crouched but also used only so big that he could easily construct his sword. Then he made the handles, or bindings. He thought about simple straps, but was sure they would rip if he flew too fast.

Time flew by as he thought of new solutions to every problem that showed up and he was startled when Uta appeared next to him, using Hide's magic. Kaneki looked up and saw Hide in the far right corner of the room. Then he saw him in the far left. As his eyes darted from one corner to the other, he was sure he saw two Hides at the same time. "He's a bright kid, right?" Uta said. "Now show me what you can do." Kaneki looked at him and narrowed his eyes a little. "Can't you see? Blood control. Haemokinesis, idiot" then he slapped himself. He hated this persona. Uta only rose an eyebrow. Then he took Kaneki's switchblade which still laid on the floor, then stabbed himself in the right thigh. He didn't flinch at all, which surprised Kaneki. It hurt him a lot the first few times he stabbed himself. A gush of blood flooded out of the man's thigh. His face scrunched up in anticipation, but nothing happened. "Why can't I control it?" he asked loudly, snarling at Kaneki. "How did you learn to control it?!" he asked, screaming at him. "I didn't, I was born with it." Kaneki tried to reason. "Halfbreed!" the man yelled and yanked back Kaneki's bangs which the boy used to shield his eyes. He revealed Kaneki's right eye, which was the same as his. "You are a half-demon!" the man yelled and slapped Kaneki across the face. Kaneki stumbled backwards, his hair starting to blacken again.

A flash appeared and the teacher was yanked back from the boy and into the far left corner of the room by Hide. Everyone in the room could hear the insane laugh their teacher let out. Next he realized there two lightnings chasing one another through the gym while everyone else sought shelter. Kaneki constructed his shield and levitated himself high up into the air. Hide and his teacher laid in different corners of the room, panting. Sighing, the teacher dismissed the class. Kaneki floated down and let the blood fall to the floor. As his hair blackened again, he walked over to pick up the unconscious Hide.

As Kaneki carried Hide to the nursery of the school, he felt his field of vision slowly getting blurry at the edges. His mind stopped functioning like it should and he fell down to his knees. Hide, who was draped around his shoulders, fell next to him, facing in his direction. He only saw flashing purple hair and a loud exclamation, something like "MON DIEU" or like that.

As he opened his eyes, he first didn't know where he was. Then it struck him: He fell unconscious with Hide on his back. "Très bien, you woke up!" he heard a male voice next to him. He apparently laid on a bed, and judging from the bulge in the mattress right to him, he did not lay on it alone. He rapidly turned around and felt instantly groggy. "You looked like you lost an awful amount of blood, though I could not find any wounds, mon ami" the voice said again and Kaneki tried to sit upright. The voice came from his left. So, the carrier of the voice was not on this bed. "Aren't you willing to talk a bit? I did save you out there, Uta was furieux!" Kaneki managed to sit straight, looked his self-proclaimed savior in the eye and easily recognized the man as the one who sniffed his hand that morning, which was pretty hard to forget.

"Anyway, my name is Tsukiyama Shuu, what's is your name?" asked the man with a french accent. "I am Kaneki" answered the other, looking at the weight that pushed his bed down and was relieved to see a mess of blonde hair. "Kaneki...only Kaneki or is the more?" the man asked. Kaneki blinked at him, slowly before avoiding the question carefully. "I am sorry for the inconvenience, but I think Hide and I should leave again. How long were we gone?" he asked. Tsukiyama sighed. "Mon dieu, you sure are a handful. You were only unconscious for fifteen minutes or so, surprisingly." he added. "Does that mean I could manage to get to the next lesson in time?" Tsukiyama shrugged his shoulders. "I can ensure that." he said. "Where are we, actually?" Kaneki asked and looked around. He was sure the school wouldn't have such nice furniture. "At my home, mon ami" answered Tsukiyama, "But behind that door is the school" he added mysteriously.

Hide finally stirred awake too. "Hey 'Neki, why are you lying next to me? And who is...oh, the hand-sniffing-guy." Hide's eyes narrowed somewhat. The purple-haired went two steps backwards. The boys got up, Hide still a bit shaky on his feet. Kaneki's regeneration had been amplified by the sleep he was put in. "So, how abut we get going?" proposed Hide. Kaneki nodded and they thanked Tsukiyama, who put a hand over his eyes dramatically and then waved it off. "Who is your teacher for the next lesson?" he asked then. "We don't know yet, but the class is French." answered Hide. "That is très bien! In that case, I am your teacher!" answered (obviously) the grown-up.

"How are we going to get to our classroom?" asked Kaneki and looked at the man expectantly. "We go through a door" was the answer and Tsukiyama opened the door to the bedroom and it opened to show a classroom fully out of control.

Omake:

Touka sat down slowly, Yoriko chatting cheerily to a boy next to her. The boy obviously tried to flirt with her and stared at Yoriko's breasts the whole time. Of course, he tried to conceal his staring, but Touka still saw it. As Yoriko waved him Good Bye and he walked off to his friends, Touka glared a dagger at him. Well, a dagger doesn't quite cut the chase. It was more like a claymore. Touka had decided on a decent meal for that night and shot an evil smirk at the boy who probably never before had experienced the thrilling aspects of stabbed through the heart by a smirk. Touka turned away from him and towards her neighbor. She thanked...well, someone, that Yoriko sat next to her. She wouldn't even have to talk to her, Yoriko talked enough for them both and still managed to not only not annoy Touka but also to actually make her smile.

Omake end.

As the teacher and the two boys walked into the room and saw what was going on, they ad three different reactions. Tsukiyama sighed, slammed the door shut and silenced everyone. Kaneki hurried to sit down in the way-way-back and Hide looked like he was getting ready to join the poker party near the window.

The class was instantly muted by the bang of the door and Hide sat down next to Kaneki. The teacher introduced himself and Kaneki noted which materials he would have to buy before being poked from the side. "Hey, 'Neki" said Hide and Kaneki turned his head. "Yes?" he asked and was glad for the slight anemia he was still experiencing. Superb regeneration or not, he lost almost four liters of blood that morning. "Just wanted to say...you have the worst bedhead I've ever seen in my life" Hide chuckled loudly enough to make their teacher glare a knitting needle at them which made Hide burst out laughing. "Hide, your hair is even worse" Kaneki said after Hide playfully dodged the next glare. "What, really? What does this dude do to his bed, electrocute it?" Kaneki smiled and looked up front where the teacher was noting the dates for the class exams on the black board, he hurried to note them down. Tsukiyama ended the lesson five minutes early and they went outside. "Well, we have a break every two lessons for twenty minutes(*). Where should we go?" asked Hide and crossed his arms behind his head. "I don't know, but we should check where we can fetch food", Kaneki said, "and coffee"

Hide smiled before they went to look for a kiosk. When they finally found it, the break was almost over. Kaneki bought a coffee. "Hide, help me, I can't read this" he whispered in Japanese at the blonde. "There are pretzels, sandwiches and wow, they even have onigiri!" Hide cheered. Kaneki bought a pack of four of the rice balls and reached one to Hide, who was practically morphing into a dog. They arrived just on time for the lesson to start.

As it turned out, they wouldn't have needed to come punctually, as their teacher came ten minutes late, stated his name – Yomo – and then didn't speak anymore. He just wrote on the blackboard when the class would take their exams, what they had to buy and that they should do literally anything as long as it didn't involve him and took place in the classroom. That class was over quickly, as Kaneki and Hide spent the time chatting and watching two of their classmates fight. One was the white-haired kid, Suzuya, the other had brown hair and a frown on his face. The brunette didn't fight very well, Suzuya was just playing around with him before letting him trip over a red string he laid out as a tripwire and holding a knife to his neck. Sighing, Kaneki looked away.

"Ah, only one more hour, right?" Hide said as they left the room, flashing Kaneki a grin that stole the sun's light for a moment. Kaneki found himself get distracted by the smile and muttered "Yeah, sure" before darting his eyes away. The boys walked to their next classroom and sat down in the back. The teacher came in right as the bell rang and sat down behind the teacher's desk. His white hair looked out of place regarding his obvious youthfulness. "My name is Arima. I will teach English." His voice was calming, but one could hear the obvious sleep deprivation behind it, it was kind of tiring. Arima's half-lidded eyes fell on Kaneki and he felt a shiver going through him. Those eyes were those of a man who knew of his authority and who was deadly in a fight. They moved on and Kaneki saw Hide's face contorted in a frown. "You will need a textbook and a dictionary, as well as a notebook. For today, we will look at the dates for the exams this year and the first chapter of the textbook." he let a few copies pass through the room.

Nobody dared to whisper, let alone speak under the gaze of the bloodshot eyes. Kaneki looked at the worksheet and understood exactly nothing. He wrote a small note and passed it to Hide while the teacher was facing the other direction. The kanji for help was written on it. Hide read it and suppressed a chuckle before taking Kaneki's worksheet and finished it while also filling out his own. He needed only ten minutes, his hand moving near sonic speed. He passed the sheet to Kaneki and wrote "You seriously need to learn roman letters" on the backside.

Ten minutes later, everyone had finished the sheet and Arima gave everyone the solutions. Hide had made only few mistakes. The class had ten minutes left and Arima dismissed the students after telling them where to buy the textbook.

"So, are you coming with me?" asked Hide and looked back at Kaneki who was half a step behind him. "Where?" asked Kaneki before remembering. "The bookstore café?" Hide chuckled and Kaneki found himself willing to kill a person to hear that chuckle again. "Yes, right, I..." Kaneki stuttered. Hide shook his head playfully and folded his arms behind his head.

"What can I get you two?" asked a girl with long purple hair. "Your phone number" Hide flirted playfully and Kaneki felt as if he was stabbed through the heart with an icicle before shaking off the feeling and leaned backwards uncomfortably. The purple-haired shot Hide a glance that could freeze hell over, but apparently not the sun as Hide's wide grin remained in place perfectly. Kaneki coughed slightly. "A mocca" Hide said then and looked at Kaneki. "A coffee, black, please" ordered the brunette and the girl nodded.

"What was that all about?" asked Hide and smiled and Kaneki. "What?" asked the black-haired unsettled. "You all tensing up when I flirted with her, if I didn't know better I'd say you're hitting on me" the blond rambled on, "I mean, I couldn't blame you, I am so hot I could crush on myself." Hide chuckled and Kaneki motioned to stand up, feeling uncomfortable. Hide grabbed his arm. "Hey, stay here, I was just joking, right?" Hide looked at him remorsefully. Kaneki sighed. "Just, please...don't do that again" he muttered and Hide nodded.

When the girl came back, Hide only thanked her and held his eyes fixed on Kaneki who nodded his thanks at her. The two sipped their coffees in silence for a while before Hide once again grabbed Kaneki's hand. "Hey, 'Neki" he said. "Yes?" replied the black-haired and looked over the rim of his cup. "I am kind of new in this city and I don't yet have any friends" the blonde started, not letting go of Kaneki's wrist, "So I wanted to ask if you wanted to be my first friend" he said with an illuminating eye-smile.

Without even a moment of hesitation, Kaneki wiggled out of Hide's hold and instead interlaced their fingers, smiling. "Of course, I'd love to" he said. Hide chuckled and freed his hand. "Jeez, boys, step down the gay" chuckled the purple-haired girl next to them. "Oh shit, she CAN display emotions" Hide said cheerfully and slowly freed his hand. As the cold hair hit Kaneki's hand, he realized just how intimate the gesture had been. He looked out of the window in a vain attempt to hide the crimson blush prospering on his face.

"It's gotten dark outside" said Hide, whose gaze had followed Kaneki's. "Yes, I somehow have to get home at the other side of town..." Kaneki shuddered. He hated dark alleys and he'd have to pass a few on his way home. "I hope this doesn't sound awkward now, but you could crash at my apartment" Hide proposed, touching his chin nervously, and Kaneki's cheeks were involuntarily tinted crimson yet again. "That would be great" muttered Kaneki. Hide cheered and they paid, leaving the café. Hide waved his good-byes at the purple-haired girl.

"It's only a few minutes from here" said Hide, which turned out to be true. Hide opened the door and said "I am back loudly" before pulling Kaneki inside. "Hide's back!" said a feeble voice and a petite girl with long brown braids jumped up and hugged the boy. "Hey, hey, Hinami, I was only gone for like eleven hours" Hide said, smile spreading across his features, a genuine one. "Thirteen hours and eight minutes" said Hinami tauntingly. Hide ruffled her hair. "Who is that boy?" asked Hinami, admonishment completely wiped off her face. "I am Kaneki" started Kaneki. "He is my first friend here in town!" Hide grinned widely.

A towering, brown-haired man came out of one of the rooms. "Hide, you're back" he said, smiling slightly. "And you are his friend?" the man asked. Kaneki nodded. The brunette came up to him and looked down at the boy. Kaneki noticed his beard looked like an upside-down "no"-hiragana. "In that case, welcome to the family. I am Banjou, Kazuichi Banjou and I kind of run this house-hold when Hide and little Hinami are in school" the man started talking. "And now you met the whole family" said Hide, putting his arm around Kaneki's shoulders. "And also – Kazuichi, we are hungry!" Banjou grumbled and motioned for them to follow him into a kitchen.

"So, Kaneki, doesn't sound too American. You from Japan?" Kaneki found himself flinching at the accent Banjou used, it sounded much like his aunt's. "Yes, I am. Tokyo, to be exact" Kaneki nodded, feeling uneasy. "In that case, there's no need for the macho role" said Banjou, accent-free Japanese. "You said your name was Kaneki?"

They talked hushed for quite a while and Kaneki started to take a liking in the man. Banjou was a man who was fairly easy to like, though. As were Hinami and Hide and Kaneki already found himself dreading over the question Banjou and Hide have half-jokingly-half-seriously asked him: If he wanted to move in with them.

"Boys, it's already 1 am! Geez, you have to wake up at 7 am, school's at 7:30!" Kaneki and Hide nodded smiling and moved out of the kitchen. Then it struck Kaneki like a lighting: "Hide, where am I going to sleep?" he whispered. Hide was barely able to suppress the loud laugh threatening to escape his mouth. It came out as a slight chuckle, making Kaneki's heart skip a beat. "Well, I do have a couch in my bedroom" Hide answered. Kaneki nodded, his heart sinking without him knowing why.

The laid down, Hide on the bed and Kaneki on the sofa, and Hide put out the lights. He clapped his hands twice and the illumination faded. "Goodnight, 'Neki" Hide said with a voice softer than a puppy dog's baby-fur. Kaneki felt a smile creep onto his face. "Goodnight, Hide" he replied and his voice unwittingly soaked in emotion, he couldn't make out which though. "It's Nagachika Hideyoshi" Hide said in a shushed tone and Kaneki felt his heart melt. It meant Hide trusted him, had found reason to like him enough to tell him his full name. In supernatural world, another person knowing your full name was them having power over you.

A quick explanation: If one called a person by their real name, one could summon and control them. This only worked trice in a lifetime.

"Kaneki Ken" Kaneki replied within seconds. "Still gonna call you 'Neki" Hide said and the smile could be heard within his voice. Shortly after, Kaneki could hear Hide was in the realm of dreams. He recapped the day and got stuck at the point where Uta figured out he was a half-demon. It was true, but still he tried to conceal it, knowing people didn't like demons at all. He couldn't blame them though, story had it demons were bloodthirsty, evil-minded creatures straight from hell. Well, hell was one way to put it, demons liked to refer to their home as "The Darkness' Realm" and their leader as "The Darkness".

But now he had been revealed to the whole class. And Hide still stuck to him, even allowed him to crash on his couch. Kaneki sighed through his nose and then turned onto his side. He was never one to sleep soundly, he was after all half a demon who were nocturnal, sometimes even insomniac, creatures. So he sat on his sofa, deciding he wouldn't be able to sleep for that night. Great thing he had brought his book, the Hanged Man's McGuffin. At his apartment, he would switch the light on, but as he was sleeping over, he couldn't.

He sighed and searched for anything to illuminate the book. Relieved, he found a small stash of Glowstone Powder, which he scattered on his palm. It started glowing mildly and Kaneki held it closer to the book. He started reading.

He wasn't even on page thirty, as he found his thoughts drifting off the book's subject and towards his new-found friend. He shook his head and focused on the book again.

Another ten pages later, he caught himself wondering how Hide's hair would feel if he tangled it around his fingers. Again, he shook the thoughts off, knowing exactly well where they were heading.

And before he even read the next paragraph, he snarled as the thought of how Hide's lips would feel on his, how his skin would feel under his hands, how his body would feel pressed against his firmly.

He stood up and noticed he was definitely aroused by the thoughts. His demon side urged him to walk over and slam the blonde's body into the bed, make him moan and clutch at the sheets. He was, however, in his human form and the thoughts were pressed to the way-way-back of his brain. That wouldn't solve his problem at hand though**.

He walked out the room and into the kitchen, careful not to wake anyone up. He couldn't stay in the same room as Hide, hearing the boy's soft breaths and occasional trashing around in the bed. He sat in his boxers (for lack of pajamas) in the kitchen of a boy he met only the previous day (as it was almost 2 am) while avoiding to fantasize about said boy in a very inappropriate way. He closed his eyes and slid down the wall, sitting on the bench now.

"Hard time sleeping?" he flinched at the hushed voice next to him and instinctively bit his thumb to draw blood, collected it and constructed his sword, holding it one hand and leveling it at the voice. He blindly stabbed in the direction, his demon side overruling. As he caught himself again, a mess of blood staining his clothes and his sword deconstructing. His hair tainted black and he fell unconscious. It was a lot of reasons adding up, sleep deprivation and anemia amassed with the shock of seeing he mutilated his friend's father figure to the point of no recognition.

Last thing he saw was the shocked face Hide fashioned when he walked in on the scene.

(*) during the first 20-minute-break, they were in the gym with Uta.

(**) and if you chuckled now, you are definitely not Mature Audience yet. Or a sexually frustrated college student.


End file.
